Alta Ski Area To Replace Sunnyside Chairlift With New High Speed 6‑Person Chair

Earlier this week Alta Ski Area filed documents with the US Forest Service about plans on replacing their Sunnyside Chairlift with a new high-speed, six-person detachable chair lift that they plan on constructing over the summer.

This new chair lift would basically be replacing both the Sunnyside and Albion lifts with the idea being that this new high-speed lift would help improve the uphill capacity from the Albion base. 

In the project summary that Alta proposed to the US Forest Service they clearly state their reasoning for the upgrade. 

Above: Albion lift removal project.

“The Albion lift is a fixed-grip, center-pole chairlift that was installed in 1976. It is rarely operated and is maintained only to provide back-up capacity out of the Albion base area in the event that Sunnyside lift breaks down. However,
Alta Ski Area (Alta) plans to replace Sunnyside lift with a new, six-pack detachable lift during the summer of 2022, a project approved in the Forest Service’s 2017 decision on Alta’s master development plan revision. The new lift would serve the functions of both the existing Sunnyside and Albion lifts, making Albion lift unnecessary. Coupled with its age and condition, this makes removal of the Albion lift appropriate at this time.” 

This new proposal comes as no surprise as it has been stated on Alta’s website as Future Plans since 2017. This is only the beginning of some major changes to Alta to help improve traffic and uphill capacity.